Hungarian PM says he is ready to meet Zelenskyy early next week

Jun 2, 2026 - 10:12

Hungarian Prime Minister Péter Magyar has said he is ready to meet Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy early next week if an agreement can be reached on the issue of the Hungarian minority's fundamental rights.

Source: Magyar at a joint press conference with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz in Berlin, as cited by Hungarian newspaper Portfolio.hu and reported by European Pravda

Details: Magyar confirmed that negotiations between Hungary and Ukraine are ongoing – currently at a technical level – regarding the language, cultural and educational rights of the Hungarian minority living in Ukraine.

"At present, these negotiations are progressing very promisingly. We hope that they can be concluded at the technical level as early as this week," he said.

Magyar said he is ready to meet with Zelenskyy early next week if an agreement can be reached on the issue of fundamental rights for the Hungarian minority.

Quote: "For a minority, being able to use your mother tongue in kindergarten, at school, in public administration, or to defend your cultural rights, is not something extra. It is a fundamental human right, and we believe that a country that wishes to begin accession negotiations with the EU must respect these rights."

Details: The prime minister stressed that he is very optimistic about the possibility of resolving this dispute with Ukraine, which has gone on for more than a decade.

"We are ready to start a new chapter in Hungarian-Ukrainian relations," he noted.

Background:

Magyar has said that he will unblock the opening of negotiating clusters for Ukraine only if Kyiv guarantees the implementation of Hungary's 11 demands regarding national minorities.
Following a meeting with Magyar in Brussels, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said that the opening of negotiating clusters for Ukraine will be discussed at a European Council meeting on 18-19 June.
Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha has called on the EU to open all negotiating clusters for Ukraine in June.